The Silenced Tale was a good conclusion to the series. In this book they are not going back into the book world, since the villain has come with them into this world. In this book the Author has much more to say and since the villain is closely connected to him, we see him much more. But why, ou why, was it necessary to change the Author who at the beginning of the book is jolly old man, who is slightly overweight and slightly freighted of everything, into a drooling brute, who is after fan girls and is not at all politically correct, at the end? Why was necessary to change otherwise smart and witty protagonists into extremely close-minded and stupid? I got the feeling like there was two authors for this book, one who wrote the beginning and somebody else wrote the part on of the FantaCon, and they didn’t really care, if the parts were in sync or not.

It was not a bad story, it was a good ending to the series, just the end of the story did not really fit.

Writers of fiction provide Readers with places of escape from a mundane world of ordinary happiness and sadness, human hurting human, by providing them with worlds of excruciating goodness and evil in which to revel. Writers can inflict whatever degradation and horror imaginable upon their characters without fear of reprisal. When you think of it that way, Writer as God and Reader as Accolyte, the world of books and stories becomes a vile and evil place where the worst can happen without consequence. Religion ruins everything.

Are our lives preordained, written in a book bound and unchangeable? Writer as God? Or, do we wallow in self-determination? So many questions in need of answers that seem only answerable after a lifetime of contemplation. Then, there is the Book, the one that brings it all into clearly muddy view. I am struggling not to do a single spoiler, and I feel that anything too specific will spoil things. What I will say is that there is not enough praise I can heap upon THE SILENCED TALE. My usual go to for a book like this is to say that I wish I could give it six out of five stars. That's not good enough here. This book, this series, is a perfect ten no matter how I determine the score.

For me, it is important to come away from reading with new understanding of things like the human condition, the state of the world, and current events. J. M. Frey manages to incorporate ideas such of these into her fiction. I don't read a book or story BECAUSE a book or series has a strong female lead, but I do appreciate when it does. The books in The Accidental Turn series revolve around a brash, smart woman who also relishes being a woman. I can't say more.

There are currently three novels and two novellas set in two worlds united and separated by magic. I would recommend that they be read in the following order:

Book 1 - THE UNTOLD TALE
Novella - Arrivals
Book 2 - THE FORGOTTEN TALE
Book 3 - THE SILENCED TALE
Novella - Ghosts

The first book can well be read as a standalone; however, to stop there would be to deny yourself the pleasure of reading the entire saga.

When all is said and done, the one thing in all this that I would like to read is Pip's PhD thesis. Oh yes, and the best adventures from the Scrolls of Bevel Dom.

All good things come in threes and the Accidental Turn trilogy is no different. Whilst I loved The Forgotten Tale, after reading The Silenced Tale I have to admit that it did suffer slightly from the second-book slump—though only in comparison. The Untold Tale was absolutely brilliant in how Lucy pokes at the fantasy novel from within the novel, and The Forgotten Tale continues in that tradition, but The Silenced Tale takes it into a whole different plane.

In this third book, the focal point moves from Forsyth Turn & Lucy Piper in Hain to concentrate on the creator of the Hain itself—the self-important, misogynistic white man, Elgar Reed. Can a work of fantasy truly stand alone from its creator? How much does the writer’s world view and experiences colour the work itself? How does the fandom that grows around a work affect it? What makes something canon? Is it the intention of the writer or how the fans interpret it?

Magic isn’t supposed to exist in the real world, but somehow it’s leaking through from Hain. And Elgar is being hounded by a stalker who just might be tapping into it. Elgar hopes the stalker is a mere mortal, but if he isn’t, the only way to stop it might be to write an end to it. Only, Elgar can’t. He can’t write anything else about Hain, knowing as he does that the people in it are real. That his choices as writer have affected their lives in very real and hurtful ways. He’s learning, though. He’s learning to be better, to be respectful, to stop hurting people for the sake of the plot, to stop taking people for granted, to stop being racist and sexist in his writing—though he still lapses in real life.

Fandom isn’t as pretty and gushing as it appears to be. Yes, it’s magic and it’s creative and it pushes the boundaries in a million different ways. But there are disgruntled fans out there who believe that the only way to settle differences is through violence. And that punching up to the man may sometimes need to get bloody. Frey explores thoughtfully the world of fantasy cons and fan fiction, digs into representation and intention, argues through fetishization and tropes, doubling back to stab at the patriarchy and white men again and again in various ways—We exist for ourselves and we’re worth it is the message Frey is repeating over and over again, whether you’re talking about the portrayal of women, POC or LGBT (and probably various others I glossed over) in fiction.

In a way, it’s a difficult book to get through. There’s anger and hurt to work through, there’s fear and sorrow and a harrowing scene that made me want to cry, and then there’s that whole bittersweet ending; the finality of parting countered by a sense of reunion, the regret of an unchangeable past amidst a bright hope for tomorrow. In the vernacular of our times, when we’ve lost all ability to word: ALL THE FEELS.

Absolute WOW. I have basically read this entire trilogy in the span of one week, and now that I've finished the final book, I want nothing so much as to pick up the first one and start it all over again. This ending to the trilogy has captured me so completely and wrung out my heart, and it is because this superbly written story stands on the shoulders of two amazing books that came first. The Untold Tale and The Forgotten Tale set the stage that allows this finale piece, The Silenced Tale, to be so extraordinarily powerful.



For me, some of the draw of fantasy novels is that they take you out of the modern world and let you go exploring in a land that is so different. The magic lays, in part, in those heroes that roam the land doing good and saving people. All of my favorite fantasy novels are set in the same kind of time period - a time of horses and carriages, beautiful gowns, dragons, and swords. I adore this setting. But it occurs to me, as I devour book after book after book that no matter the time, setting, or cast, villains often do the same things. The heroes must respond in accordance with societal expectations, are limited by the limit of technological developments, and must always, always be thinking one step ahead of the bad guys to try and limit the damage done to ancillary figures.



Villains, on the other hand, are terrifying in their lack of originality. No matter where or when or who, the tools of kidnap, torture, threat, stalking, maiming, killing are always favored. Because they always work to inspire fear in others. That knowledge was really driven home for me when Viceroy stepped from the pages of Hain and right into our modern world - and kept doing all the same things. That Forsyth struggled so hard for so long - and continues to struggle - to fit into the modern world, yet Viceroy was able to proceed with business as usual with just a few minor adjustments was a terrifying revelation.



In the modern world, readers of The Accidental Turn series logically turn to Pip to be the brains of the operation - no slight intended to the Shadow Hand. In this Tale, however, Pip is very nearly laid low by the run-off of the Viceroy's activities. Here we see so clearly that Pip, while immensely strong and capable, is also human and fallible and vulnerable at times. She cannot face everything entirely on her own...and she doesn't have to. Over the series, Pip and Forsyth have become as dynamic and formidable a team as Kintyre and Bevel Dom. It was wonderful to read the depth of Pip and Forsyth's relationship.



When the climax of the story came and the final show-down began, I was completely consumed by it. I laughed out loud, I cried, I shook with anger. That is the mark of a truly excellent tale, in my opinion. When you are drawn in so utterly that you feel the characters' emotions and respond with them, the story has come alive off of the pages. That is what The Silenced Tale was for me.



I absolutely loved this series. I refuse to write any spoilers, because you, quite frankly, just need to read it. Go read it! Start with The Untold Tale, of course. For my part, I will begin again and live the journey again.

The Silenced Tale, Book 3 of the Accidental Turn Series, J.M. Frey

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: LGBTQIA , Sci Fi & Fantasy

I've loved this trilogy, fresh and unusual, it hinges round the characters in a series Elgar read wrote. By some quirk of fate he wrote magic so perfectly that it – and the actual characters, places and events, became real. As a Reader, Pip was pulled into the world and met Forsyth. Now they both live in the Overrealm, our world, with their daughter Alis.
They had issues with Hain and certain people in the last book, where events there were affecting the Overrealm, and now they fear that things weren't as safe as they left them, that maybe, just maybe, someone else has come through to the Overrealm.

There's another fantastic adventure, Syth being his spymaster self here in the real world, master of the PC and Internet. I love how he's adapted to it, his careful turn of phrase, his planning, always looking ten steps ahead and of course his love for Pip and Alis.
Pip is wonderful, such an intelligent girl and I love how she breaks out the writing jargon, explaining to Syth ( and readers like me!) about tropes, genres, and how books are plotted. I read, I had no idea of the structure of a story but it makes sense, and makes my author admiration even greater! She's having a bad time in this book, due to the events of the past that connect her to magic through the carvings.
To begin its just a series of odd events that could be explained away, but Syth being the cautious type he sets his programme up to look for anything that might be connected. I love when he says he thought Pip's Poster “its not paranoia if they're out to get you” was a warning not an irony. That sums him up in a way, written to protect, its in his very marrow to do just that.
Of course what he and Pip don't know is that Elgar is having issues too, with what the police think is a stalker, but what Elgar fears is Hain stuff, and vengeance from there. He had no way of knowing what he wrote created a real world, and he feels so guilty for the casual way he wrote torture and death in his stories. There's a top secret TV series based around his books being planned and the police agree its a good idea for him to go there for a couple of weeks. Syth's programme tells him what Elgar didn't though, so he's beginning to piece together events and he now knows he, Pip and Elgar are facing real danger that the police can't help with. How can they fight magic and fictional people that have become real. If they tried to tell them they'd be taken to the nearest Psych centre!

It all comes together in a nail biting, climatic finish, and I was gutted at some of the events and yet – it was the perfect way to end the trilogy.
I read the Magician trilogy when that was first out, back in Oct 2014, and thought it would make a great family film, Disney agreed some time later. I think this too would make a great film, has that magic (hah!) content that will appeal to kids and adults alike and is so very unusual.

Stars: Five, a perfect ending to a terrific, exciting and fresh trilogy.

ARC supplied for review purposes by Netgalley and Publishers

Review can be found on *Milky Way of Books*

The thrilling conclusion to this amazing series is here! I can't express my love enough for this book which, along with the series, should be given more attention. It's not your usual story, the author hints lots of social issues through her writing in a brutal, yet sarcastic way and there is a wonderful cast of characters!

So, after the end of the second book and its adventures, Forsyth, Pip and their sweet daughter return to their normal lives. But Elgar Reed, the author of the books Forsyth came from, is plagued by nightmares and a stalker. Soon a hunt will begin where a known villain is alive and kicking and slowly magic is seeping into our world.

There are many POVs here; Reed Forsyth and some of Pip. I love how Reed slowly tries to learn more about his own characters and how hard he also tries to be there for Forsyth and his family. Pip is, as usual, a smart, strong woman who will do anything for her family, despite the fear of losing them.
And Forsyth! My beautiful, sweet, cinnamon roll gets a hard edge on his character! I didn't expect some things to happen, which actually had me trembling while reading! Some action scenes were very powerful!

There is a certain scene in a Con, where magic seeps in! Imagine all the cosplays suddenly getting magic powers! That's all! No more spoilers!

There was also a huge surprise in this book, which I didn't expect and I grew to love. The ending? It gutted me because I am not prepared to leave these amazing characters behind! Luckily Frey will also have a collection of short stories, so there'll be that!

In the end, anyone should read this series! It's enjoyable, quirky with a good dose of action, romance and humour!

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

There is no end to how wonderful these books are. It's much different than the last two, as it never takes place inside the book, but entirely in the Overrealm. As much as I personally prefer the Turns' world, I think Frey has just as much talent writing in our world. The suspense and a three-dimensional view of Elgar Reed showed her incredible writing skills in any scenario.

Of course I'm so glad for the return of Frey's characters, her feminism, and her trope-bending. Another incredible book, even though I'm sad to see the end of the trilogy. Thanks so much for sharing your world with us!

Someone is out to get Elgar Reed, Writer, and it's unclear whether the someone is from the Overrealm or not.

I don’t think I’ve ever read the third book in a trilogy without having read either of the first two, before. But, given how much background I was missing, I was very pleasantly surprised at how little I FELT I was missing. Everything made perfect sense; I had no difficulty following any of the action. And I loved the book. I loved the characters, the plot, the dialogue. It had all the feels. In fact, I found it so intense that I had to take multiple breaks from reading it. I alternated between huge gulps and tiny sips. Both were delicious. I can't imagine how much better it will be, once I go back and read the first two books.